Wokingham Borough Connect
 Welcome to the November edition of the SENCO newsletter. This edition includes:
- Update from Helen Jackson-Brench, Area SENCO
- Training Opportunities
- SEND Team update
- Information about setting requests for pupils in nursery classes
Update from Helen Jackson-Brench, Area SENCO
I hope you all had a restful half term. There are a just a couple of updates this month. From now on the SENCO Newsletter will be sent out half-termly.
Update on the SENCO Hub
The Area SENCO Team have made further updates to the SENCO Hub. In order to ensure that the same information isn’t repeated in several different places, you will be redirected to the Local Offer if the information is already on there. You will find that this is the case for the page that tells you how to apply for EHC Needs Assessments
The password protected section of the SENCO Hub is also developing. It now includes resources and recordings from the SENCO network meetings and resources from the SENCO Induction sessions. Further training sessions will be added once they have been delivered. If you are unsure of your school login for these pages please email the edpartnershipteam@wokingham.gov.uk
SEND Team update
As you are aware, the SEND Team is undergoing significant change at the moment. Recruitment has been happening over the last few weeks and there will be a number of staff starting their new roles in January as well as at other times. You can find out more about the structure on the SEND Service page of the Local Offer. Please bear with the team this term as they wait for these roles to be filled.
The team has now transitioned to a school-based allocation model. This means that all Wokingham Mainstream and Specialist provisions have an allocated SEND Casework Practitioner.
Your link officer will be in touch to introduce themselves within the first two weeks of the new way of working. They will arrange an initial meeting with you to make sure that they have picked up all casework and are aware of priorities for your setting.
After Christmas, your link casework practitioner will start to attend termly planning meetings with your setting, which will align where possible with any other link professionals, such as EP and EWO.
We are incredibly excited about the journey ahead of us and truly believe that this way of working will be beneficial for all parties involved, but more importantly will have a significantly positive impact on the experience of the SEND system for children, young people and their families.
However, we also recognise that change doesn’t happen overnight, so we kindly ask that you bear with us whilst the team find their feet in this new model.
 Training opportunities
SENCO Network Meeting
The next SENCO network meeting will be held at St Crispin's on Thursday 28th November. Please aim to arrive at 3:30pm and we will start at 3:45pm. The agenda will include an update from the Commissioning Team about the MAIC process and our outreach services, information about annual review processes and an update about the Ordinarily Available Provision guidance that will be coming out in the new year.
SENCO Refresher Training:
The Area SENCO Team are offering a SENCO Refresher Training session on EHC needs assessments on Monday 18th November from 1:30pm-2:30pm. This session will focus on the factors that panel take into consideration when deciding whether an EHC needs assessment is necessary. We will also look at some examples of provision maps. The invitation to this online session has been emailed to all SENCOs.
Recordings of the training will uploaded to the hub once completed.
Addington Outreach:
AOIS are offering the following workshop this term.
Sensory Integration & Regulation Workshop
What happens if the signals coming from our senses are too weak? Or too strong? Or if the brain cannot make sense of them? An introduction to sensory integration difficulties which may interfere with learning and behaviour. How to recognise the need for and initiate calming techniques.
Visit the AOIS website to book a place
Beyond Autism:
Beyond Autism are offering some some free training:
Upcoming sessions
Setting requests for pupils in nursery classes
There has been some confusion about whether settings or parents/carers should apply for EHC needs assessments for pupils in Nursery classes. If schools are concerned about children in their nurseries and think that they require an EHC needs assessment, they should make the application in the same way they would for school age pupils. Parents should be invited to contribute their views. More information can be found on our Local Offer: How to request an EHC needs assessment
 Have your say
At the next SENCO network meeting, we will be asking you to share your views about our current outreach offer and about the work we have been doing on our Ordinarily Available Provision guidance.
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